Grant Gerlock

At Clarke Community Schools in Osceola, Iowa, Superintendent Steve Seid has an idea of how to rearrange things in school so students can come back safely in the middle of a deadly pandemic. Desks will be spread out as much as possible. Students will be sent to the restroom one-at-a-time. Lunch periods and class dismissals will be staggered to keep people from cramming into hallways and cafeterias all at once.

Buses are still a puzzle, though. Students ride the bus to school from all across the county. Seid isn’t sure how to manage that while observing social distancing.

Follow the latest Iowa news in our Daily Digest, a newsblog where you can catch up on all the headlines you'll hear about in our on-air newscasts.  

The Des Moines City Council has passed an anti-racial profiling ordinance nearly two years after the first version of the proposal was introduced.

Des Moines Black Lives Matter leaders say Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has pledged to sign an executive order to restore felon voting rights in time for the general election, but that it would not likely happen until late summer or early fall.

Follow the latest Iowa news in our Daily Digest, a liveblog where you can catch up on the headlines in five minutes and find more reporting from our news team about the stories you care about. 

Thousands of protesters gathered in downtown Cedar Rapids on Saturday, to call for policing reform, justice and equity for black Americans. They also laid out specific demands for local officials, and urged Iowans to hold their elected leaders accountable in November.

More than 1,000 protesters crowded in front of Des Moines Mayor Frank Cownie’s house Wednesday night, demanding reforms to policing and changes in policies toward protesters. It happened on the sixth consecutive day of civil unrest in communities across Iowa sparked by the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

Iowa Democrats have chosen Des Moines real estate executive Theresa Greenfield to be their nominee for the U.S. Senate, setting up what is expected to be a closely contested race against incumbent Republican Sen. Joni Ernst in November’s general election.

Large gatherings are allowed to resume starting this week. There's a primary on Tuesday, and the Iowa Legislature is returning to session Wednesday. As the state grapples with reopening, protests over the death of George Floyd have turned violent in Des Moines. 

Continue to follow the latest Iowa news here for the week of May 31-June 6.

Peaceful protests in two Iowa cities Saturday marked another day of anger in many U.S. cities over the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer.

Large gatherings will be allowed to resume and more businesses allowed to reopen in Iowa next week under the latest changes to the state’s coronavirus emergency proclamation.

Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Tuesday that starting June 1, there will no longer be a 10 person limit on gatherings in Iowa. The state is asking large gatherings to limit participants to half of the venue’s capacity and take “reasonable measures” to ensure social distancing and hygiene practices.

The state has allowed more Iowa businesses, organizations and parks to reopen. Iowans continue to adapt to the new normal, acknowledging that coronavirus is here with us, and resuming more community activities. 

Continue to follow the latest Iowa coronavirus news here, where we're posting news updates from Gov. Kim Reynolds, other state agencies, counties and businesses for the week of May 24-May 30.

A 22-year-old black man in Des Moines said he wants to know why he was targeted by three white men who assaulted him last weekend. DarQuan Jones was attacked early Saturday morning in south Des Moines and told police at least one of the men used racial slurs during the incident.

In many Iowa counties, businesses and organizations are now deciding when and how to reopen. Summer festivals and events organizations are making decisions around whether or how they will operate, and Gov. Kim Reynolds has announced that she is "shifting focus" of Iowa's coronavirus response.

Follow the latest Iowa coronavirus news here, where we're posting news updates from Gov. Kim Reynolds, other state agencies, counties and businesses for the week of May 17-May 23.

Iowa schools are closed for the rest of the school year, and many businesses remain closed, although the state did 'reopen' 77 Iowa counties on May 1. We'll be posting updates from Gov. Kim Reynolds and the Iowa Department of Public Health and other news as it becomes available here for the week of May 3-May 9.

Iowa schools are closed for the rest of the school year, and many businesses remain closed through April 30 by order of the governor as the state works to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. We'll be posting updates from Gov. Kim Reynolds and the Iowa Department of Public Health and other news as it becomes available here for the week of April 26 - May 2.

Iowa schools are closed for the rest of the school year, and many businesses remain closed through April 30 by order of the governor as the state works to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. We'll be posting updates from Gov. Kim Reynolds and the Iowa Department of Public Health and other news as it becomes available here for the week of April 19-25.

Iowa schools and many businesses remain closed through April 30 by order of the governor as the state works to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. We'll be posting updates from Gov. Kim Reynolds and the Iowa Department of Public Health and other news as it becomes available here for the week of April 12-18. 

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Monday that two more long-term care centers are working to contain outbreaks of COVID-19 among residents and staff. She did not name the centers, but said one is in Tama County and another is in Washington County. That follows news last week that an outbreak was in progress at Heritage Specialty Care in Cedar Rapids.

Iowa businesses, school districts and citizens continue to respond to the escalating COVID-19 pandemic. We'll be posting updates as more news regarding the spread of the virus in Iowa becomes available here for the week of April 5-11. 

The number of Iowa workers seeking unemployment assistance grew at a faster pace last week as 58,453 people filed claims with Iowa Workforce Development. That adds up to 100,343 initial unemployment claims over two weeks as the state expanded business closures to ease the severity of the coronavirus outbreak.

The Iowa Department of Human Services must expand mental health treatment at the Boys State Training School in Eldora, a state-run school for delinquent teenage boys.

A federal judge is also ordering staff members at the facility to limit the amount of time residents are placed in isolation and to no longer use a physical restraint device called “the wrap,” which U.S. District Judge Stephanie Rose equated with torture.

Iowa businesses, school districts and citizens continue to respond to the escalating COVID-19 pandemic. We'll be posting updates as more news regarding the spread of the virus in Iowa becomes available here for the week of March 29-April 4.